President Donald Trump on Saturday took aim at Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) on Truth Social, citing Chicago’s violent crime numbers and vowing that federal support could be on the way.
“Six people were killed, and 24 people were shot, in Chicago last weekend, and JB Pritzker, the weak and pathetic Governor of Illinois, just said that he doesn’t need help in preventing CRIME. He is CRAZY!!! He better straighten it out, FAST, or we’re coming! MAGA. President DJT,” Trump wrote.
The statement follows weeks of escalating tension between the White House and Illinois officials over crime and immigration enforcement in Chicago. Earlier this month, Trump federalized the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, DC, under Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, paired with a National Guard deployment. Administration officials have credited the move with sharp declines in violent crime in the nation’s capital, including a 50 percent drop in homicides over an 11-day period.
Trump has repeatedly signaled that Chicago could be next. At a recent Oval Office event, the president described the city as a “mess” and said residents were calling for federal intervention. “We’ll straighten that one out, probably next,” he remarked at the time.
Gov. Pritzker has pushed back against Trump’s remarks, accusing the administration of “authoritarian overreach.” He warned that Illinois would “not stand idly by” if the National Guard were deployed to the city. In recent social media posts, Pritzker argued that state and local investments have already driven crime reductions, noting figures showing Chicago homicides down by more than 30 percent in the past year.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) has also opposed Trump’s approach, contending the administration’s focus on the city reflects “a disdain for working people.” Johnson pointed to expanded youth employment programs, mental health services, and affordable housing initiatives that he stated have contributed to reductions in shootings, robberies, and carjackings.
On Saturday, Johnson signed an executive order directing city agencies to resist federal immigration raids, barring Chicago police from cooperating with federal authorities on civil immigration enforcement. The order also prohibited officers from assisting in patrols, checkpoints, or traffic stops tied to federal operations. Johnson explained the measure was needed to protect residents’ constitutional rights “amidst the possibility of imminent militarized immigration or National Guard deployment,” and claimed Trump was “behaving outside the bounds of the Constitution.”
Meanwhile, Trump officials have advanced plans to use Chicago’s Great Lakes Naval Station to support upcoming immigration enforcement sweeps, prompting additional pushback from Pritzker, Johnson, and other Democrats. Former Biden Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg condemned the possible use of the station for immigration enforcement, writing on X that “our military was not set up to cater to the whims of a would-be American dictator,” while immigrant rights activist Aaron Reichlin-Melnick charged Trump with waging a “war on American cities.”
Despite the opposition, Trump has maintained that Chicago residents, particularly in neighborhoods plagued by violence, are asking for help. Local voices such as businessman and former mayoral candidate Dr. Willie Wilson have welcomed the prospect of additional law enforcement resources, arguing that public safety transcends partisan divides.
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